Pressure-regulator



3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

N. G. LOCKE. 7 Pressure-Regulator.

Patented Mar. 2, I880.

Fi Z.

3 Sheets-Sheet 3. N. C. LOCKE. Pressure-Regulator. No. 225,015. Patented Mar; 2, 1880.

Hull-#5555" r lqyar lnr.

N.PETER8. PiiOTO-UTHQGRAFHER. WASHINGTON.

.bodying my invention.

NITED STATES PATENT, OFFrcE.

NATHANIEL O. LOOKE, OF SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS.

PRESSU RE-REGULATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 225,015, dated-March 2, 1880.

' Application filed July 21, 1879. 7

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHANIEL O. LOGKE, of Salem, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Pressure-Regulators, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to valves for reducing and regulating the pressure of water, especially those of large size, such as are used in streetmains. Heretofore it has been practical] y impossible to successfully. operate regulatingvalves of large size for want of sufticient power to overcome friction and promptly move the valve to meet slight changes of pressure.

The invention consists, essentially, in combiningamain supply-valve having cylinder,piston, and inlet and outlet ports above and below said piston for the supply and exhaust of water, with a pressure-regulator having a suitable valve, with double ports, for controlling the supply of water to said cylinder for moving and controlling said main supply-valve.-

It also consists in so constructing a main supply-valve having cylinder, piston, and inlet and outlet ports that the water operating and controlling the same shall be drawn from the high-pressure side of the main supply-valve.

In the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts, Figure 1 is a plan view of the apparatus em- Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views of same. Fig. 4: is a sectional view of main supply-valve like that shown in Fig.3, but combined with a differently-coir structed pressure-regulator and valve.

A is the main supply-valve chamber, connected with a water-pipe, of which 0 is the high-pressure or inlet side and D is the lowpressure or outlet side. a is the movable gate, connected by rod b to piston t, moving in cylinder F, and having suitable packing. Attached to cylinder F is a water chest, L, havin g inlet-pipe G for conducting water from pipe 0, and provided with stopcock 0. Chest L has also exhaust or outlet pipe H, by which the exhaust or waste water'is conducted into pipe D. Ports 1" and s of chest L communicate with cylinder F, and are opened and closed by slidevalve 42, which is operated by rod is, passing through stuffing-box 0 and connected with the short arm of lever i of the pressure-regulator B. Lever t is pivoted on post in, and, passing through a slot in plunger K, is loaded with movable weight w. Plunger K rests on a water-tight flexible diaphragm, j, which forms the top of receiver J, which is connected by the back-pressure pipe I to main pipe D on the low-pressure side of main supply-valve A.

The operation is as follows: Water is admitted into pipe C- at a pressure of, say, one hundred pounds per square inch, which it is desired to reduce to, say, forty pounds per square inch, movable weight w on the lever of pressure-regulator B being so placed as to exert, by means of plunger K, the said pressure of forty pounds per square inch on diaphragmj. Now, the water from pipe 0, passing through gate a into pipe D, is also conducted by back-pressure pipe I into receiver J, exerting its pressure upon flexible diaphragm j, as well as upon plunger K. (Book 6 of small pipe Gr being suitably open, the water from pipe 0 will be admitted to chest L. Now, when the pressure of the water in pipe D shall reachforty pounds per square inch, the

same being communicated by pipe I to receiver J will just balance weight w on lever '11,- but if the pressure in pipe D tends to rise above said forty pounds it will overcome weight w, raise the long arm of the lever, at

the same time depressing the short arm, and, by means of red It, moving downward valve 1:, opening port 1", and admitting the high-press; ure water into cylinder F, and forcing down piston t, and, by its connection with gate a by piston-rod 11, moving downward main gate a and arresting the flow of water through the same until the pressure in pipe D shall be reduced to the required forty pounds per square inch, when weight to will bring down the long arm of lever 43 to a horizontal position, closing port '1. D the pressure in the same shall fall below the required limit of forty pounds, the long arm of lever '5 will be depressed by weight w, raising the short arm and moving valve o in an upward direction and opening port 8, and

at the same time opening port 4 for the es cape of the water remaining above piston t, which will now pass off through pipe H into the low-pressure pipe D, while the high-pressure water in pipe 0 is now admitted into cyl- Now, if by draft of water from pipe the piston upward against the pressure of' forty pounds still exerted on its upper side with a force of sixty pounds per square inch, which, with a piston having an area of twenty square inches, gives an aggregate force, minus friction, of twelve hundred pounds. Thus the gate a is operated automatically with certainty and without waste of water.

It will be percei 'ed that, other things being equal, varying the size of cylinder and desired.

piston will, in corresponding ratio, vary the working power of gate a.

By the proper adjustment of weight w on lever i the pressure in pipe D will be maintained at a high er or lower pressure, as maybe The same effect will be produced although the pressure in pipe 0 should vary considerably from the one hundred pounds per square inch.

Stop-cock cin pipeG is for the purpose of controlling the flow of water into cylinder F, and thus regulate the movement of piston 15, which should be quite slow.

Rodd should be of sufficient length to always extend above stufiing-box p, and will at all times indicate the position of gate a.

It is not my purpose to confine myself to any particular form of gate a, as myinvention is equally applicable to any style of gate or valve having a sliding movement.

In carrying into effect my invention, instead of pressure-regulator B, Fig. 3, any style of regulator may be employed to control the flow of water into cylinder F which is capable of being operated by the pressure of water in pipe Dr For instance, B in Fig. 4 represents a pressure-regulator applicable to my improvement. Neither do I restrict myself to the precise form of valve '0, as shown in Fig. 3, but may use any style of two-way valve, as 2;, shown in Fig. 4, controlling inlet-passages 1" and s, outlet-passages 1" and 8 being controlled by stop-cocks c e, which are permanently set to allow a small stream of water to pass through them.

This combination of gate a and regulator B may also be used as a shut-off valve for streetmains by reversing pipes to cylinder F, so that if, from break of main pipes or other cause, the

pressure in pipe D shall be reduced belowa given point at which it may be set, then the long arm of lever 11 will be depressed, raising the short arm and admitting water on top of piston t, thus closing gate a and preventing loss of water and damage.

The waste-water from cylinder F can, if desired, be allowed to run to waste instead of being conducted into pipe D, thereby relieving piston F of all back-pressure.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is Q l. The combination of a main supply-valve having cylinder F, piston t, and ports 1" 1" and s s with a pressure-regulator, when so combined for operation that said regulator shall be acted upon by the pressure of water in pipe D, thereby moving and controlling valve 1;, for admission of water above or below piston t, as the changes of pressure in pipe D may require, all substantially as shown and described.

2. Acombination, with a pressure-regulator having receiver J, diaphragm j, plunger K, and lever i, of a valve so constructed for" op eration that the increase or decrease of pressure in the receiver shall alternately open or close communication with cylinder F either above or below piston t, all substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination of valve a, cylinder F, and piston t with pipes G and H, where pipe H is connected with pipe D, for returning the exhaust or waste water to the main pipeD on the low-pressure side of valve a.

NATHANIEL O. LOUKE.

Witnesses:

WM. S. MESSEROY, JOHN OREGAN. 

